Anette Lu Jumps into Taipei Race + Links

Some of my excellent students.

This day brought the news that Annette Lu, Chen Shui-bian's Veep and longtime independence activist, announced her candidacy in the upcoming election for mayor of Taipei (Chinese)(Annette Lu on Wiki). Lu's political career probably peaked in 1997 when she was elected  County chief of Taoyuan, her birthplace. In 2000 she became Chen Shui-bian's Veep and her penchant for buffoonish remarks was one of the many factors undermining his presidency. For example, longtime residents will recall that Lu once suggested that the aborigines emigrate to Central and South America. She has also said that AIDS was punishment from God. On another occasion, with the stolid stupidity of a typical nationalist purist, she lectured the popular aboriginal singer A-mei that she had to choose between a singing career in China and Taiwan's national interests. The list goes on....

Lu is from the Hoklo Nationalist old school wing of the DPP, and shares all of their rigid, traditionalist, purist, Han chauvinist, and provincial views of the world. Such thinking is the reason a friend of mine once described Taiwan to me as "a nation with the heart of a province." Because of her clownish pronouncements and out of date mindset, she has sadly but inevitably become a marginal figure when silence and dignity could have made her an elder statesman. In her previous attempts to become presidential candidate in 2008 and 2012 she failed to break the double digit mark in the DPP primary. Even within the DPP she is not popular. It is a measure of how completely out of touch with reality she is that she is attempting to become the DPP candidate for mayor in a city which is widely considered the Bluest in Taiwan, and whose well educated population will likely find her desperate floundering to remain relevant more amusing than impressive.

I hope the DPP finds a nice, green pasture for her...
_________________
Daily Links:

• US to sell Stinger missiles to Taiwan in wake of flight route mess. Yup, some retaliation for China's decision to implement the routes without reference to Taiwan.
• Why Camphor Press re-issued the Teahouse of the August Moon
• Another accusation of Taiwanese engaged in illegal trading with N Korea.
• Umbrella movement nominated for Nobel Peace Prize. This may be a positive for similar recognition of Taiwan's democracy movement. I hope LTH gets a Nobel before he dies.
• Beijing can still feel good about Taiwan... for now. D Grossman in the National Interest
• NOT TAIWAN: Why farmers are hacking their John Deere tractor firmware

_______________________
[Taiwan] Don't miss the comments below! And check out my blog and its sidebars for events, links to previous posts and picture posts, and scores of links to other Taiwan blogs and forums!